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bract lousewort, fernleaf, towering lousewort, wood-betony

Pennell's lousewort

Habit Plants 20–80 cm. Plants 4–30 cm.
Leaves

basal 0–10, blade lanceolate, 20–120 x 10–60 mm, 1- or 2-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping or slightly overlapping distally, 1- or 2-serrate, surfaces glabrous;

cauline 4–10, blade lanceolate, 10–270 x 8–150 mm, undivided or 1- or 2-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping, serrate to 2-serrate, surfaces glabrous or scattered glandular.

basal 0–2, blade elliptic, 1–10 x 1–5 mm, 1-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping or slightly overlapping distally, dentate, surfaces glabrous;

cauline 0–5, blade lanceolate or elliptic to deltate, 7–30 x 1–25 mm, 1- or 2-pinnatifid, margins of adjacent lobes nonoverlapping or slightly overlapping distally, serrate, surfaces glabrous.

Racemes

simple, 1–4, exceeding basal leaves, each 15–75-flowered;

bracts lanceolate or subulate to trullate, 10–20 x 2–10 mm, undivided, proximal margins entire, distal entire or serrate, surfaces glabrous, hispid, or tomentose.

simple or paniculate, 1–3, exceeding basal leaves, each 8–20-flowered;

bracts deltate, 5–20 x 10–15 mm, 1- or 2-pinnatifid nearly to midrib, lobes sometimes laciniate, margins serrate, surfaces glabrous.

Pedicels

0.5–1 mm.

1–1.5 mm.

Flowers

calyx 7–15 mm, glabrous or tomentose, lobes 5, triangular or filiform, 1–10 mm, apex entire, glabrous or ciliate;

corolla 14–27 mm, tube yellow or dark blood red, 6–12 mm;

galea yellow to yellow tinged with red, purple tinged with yellow, or dark blood red, 6–15 mm, beakless or beaked, beak straight, 0.8–2.5 mm, margins entire medially and distally, apex arching over abaxial lip;

abaxial lip expanded, yellow, yellow tinged with purple, or dark blood red, 4.5–6.5 mm.

calyx 3.5–8.5 mm, glabrous, lobes 2(–4), triangular, 2–6 mm, apex dentate to 2-dentate, glabrous;

corolla 8–16 mm, tube light pink to purple, 5–9 mm;

galea bicolored, yellow with purple spots proximally, purple distally, 3–6.5 mm, beakless, margins 1-toothed medially and distally, apex straight to arching slightly over abaxial lip;

abaxial lip yellow to pink with purple spots, 3–8 mm.

2n

= 16 (Asia).

Pedicularis bracteosa

Pedicularis pennellii

Phenology Flowering Jun–Aug.
Habitat Moist tundras, stream banks, wet terraces, willow thickets, wet meadows, fens, bogs.
Elevation 0–500 m. [0–1600 ft.]
Distribution
from FNA
CA; CO; ID; MT; NM; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; BC; Asia
Discussion

Varieties 8 (8 in the flora).

Pedicularis bracteosa is found in subalpine habitats across much of western North America, occurring throughout the Rocky Mountains from central British Columbia and Alberta to northern New Mexico, as well as the Coast Range south to northern California.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Pedicularis palustris and P. pennellii are extensively branched, with branching in P. pennellii more compact and subequal, making it appear shrubby. The branches of P. palustris, in contrast, become progressively shorter distally on the stem, giving the plant a pyramidal appearance.

Calder and Taylor recognized subsp. insularis by its smaller or sometimes absent apical teeth on the galea margins. Boivin subsequently reduced it to a variety. Given this minor difference, this taxon (found only on Haida Gwaii [the Queen Charlotte Islands] of British Columbia) is not recognized here.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Parent taxa Orobanchaceae > Pedicularis Orobanchaceae > Pedicularis
Sibling taxa
P. angustifolia, P. attollens, P. aurantiaca, P. canadensis, P. capitata, P. centranthera, P. chamissonis, P. contorta, P. crenulata, P. cystopteridifolia, P. densiflora, P. dudleyi, P. flammea, P. furbishiae, P. groenlandica, P. hirsuta, P. howellii, P. labradorica, P. lanata, P. lanceolata, P. langsdorffii, P. lapponica, P. oederi, P. ornithorhyncha, P. ornithorhynchos, P. palustris, P. parryi, P. parviflora, P. pennellii, P. procera, P. pulchella, P. racemosa, P. rainierensis, P. semibarbata, P. sudetica, P. sylvatica, P. verticillata
P. angustifolia, P. attollens, P. aurantiaca, P. bracteosa, P. canadensis, P. capitata, P. centranthera, P. chamissonis, P. contorta, P. crenulata, P. cystopteridifolia, P. densiflora, P. dudleyi, P. flammea, P. furbishiae, P. groenlandica, P. hirsuta, P. howellii, P. labradorica, P. lanata, P. lanceolata, P. langsdorffii, P. lapponica, P. oederi, P. ornithorhyncha, P. ornithorhynchos, P. palustris, P. parryi, P. parviflora, P. procera, P. pulchella, P. racemosa, P. rainierensis, P. semibarbata, P. sudetica, P. sylvatica, P. verticillata
Subordinate taxa
P. bracteosa var. atrosanguinea, P. bracteosa var. bracteosa, P. bracteosa var. canbyi, P. bracteosa var. flavida, P. bracteosa var. latifolia, P. bracteosa var. pachyrhiza, P. bracteosa var. paysoniana, P. bracteosa var. siifolia
Key
1. Galeas beaked.
→ 2
2. Calyces tomentose.
var. canbyi
2. Calyces glabrous.
var. siifolia
1. Galeas beakless.
→ 3
3. Calyx lobes filiform.
→ 4
4. Corollas: tubes yellow, galeas yellow to yellow tinged with red, or purple tinged with yellow, abaxial lips yellow to yellow tinged with purple.
var. bracteosa
4. Corollas: tubes, galeas, and abaxial lips dark blood red.
var. atrosanguinea
3. Calyx lobes triangular.
→ 5
5. Galeas 10–15 mm.
var. paysoniana
5. Galeas 7–11 mm.
→ 6
6. Galea apices acute; British Colombia, Idaho, Washington.
var. latifolia
6. Galea apices obtuse; Blue and Wallowa mountains, Cascade Range, Oregon and Washington.
→ 7
7. Calyces slightly hispid; Cascade Range, Oregon and Washington.
var. flavida
7. Calyces tomentose; Blue and Wallowa mountains, Oregon, and Washington.
var. pachyrhiza
Synonyms P. parviflora subsp. pennellii, P. pennellii subsp. insularis, P. pennellii var. insularis
Name authority Bentham: in W. J. Hooker, Fl. Bor.-Amer. 2: 110. (1838) Hultén: Fl. Aleut. Isl., 300, plate 14. (1937)
Source FNA vol. 17, p. 515. Treatment author: Bruce W. Robart. FNA vol. 17, p. 529. Treatment author: Bruce W. Robart.
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